


Life's A Song

by AtheneNoctua



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Multi, Romantic Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2017-08-06
Packaged: 2018-07-22 18:40:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 18,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7449931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AtheneNoctua/pseuds/AtheneNoctua
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When one catches a glimpse of their soulmate, they start to sing.  Each party involved has a piece of the song that comes together and each song is unique to them.  How the song is carried out is determined by the singer.  Some people spend their whole lifetime scanning the crowd in order to find their soulmate while others meet young before they can barely sing.  Yet seeing your soulmate cannot guarantee that you will get together.  Many people marry others and continue to date and never meet their soulmate.</p><p>Mukuro X OC</p><p>Thank you to Rebornfricker69/Sawadoot for helping me with concepts, ideas, and just generally bringing it to life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Fate?

Chapter 1  
“Sakura?” Krystal asked answering her phone. Class had just let out at the conservatory and she was headed back to her apartment. Her heels clicked under her on the pavement in time with the song stuck in her head. Brushing back her blonde hair, Krystal switched the phone to her other ear.

“You finally picked up,” Sakura said.

“Yeah. Sorry. I was in class.” Krystal could almost see her cousin rolling her eyes on the other end.

“I have a question for you,” Sakura started.

Krystal sighed. “If it’s anything involving that mafia family you’re a part of, forget it.”

“It’s just a party!” Sakura exclaimed.

“And why do you need me for a party? Won’t your soulmate be there?” Krystal asked somewhat teasingly.

“Yes… But it would be good for you to get out more. Besides, I hardly see you anymore. We barely talk!”

“Puppy dog eyes don’t work on me. Especially over the phone. And I told you before and I’ll say it again: I am not getting involved with the mafia.”

“It’s a PARTY. You’re not committing yourself to anything. All you’ve got to do is come and enjoy yourself.”

“Enjoy myself? At a party?” Krystal laughed as she unlocked the door to her apartment and threw her bag on the couch. “Who do you think you’re talking to?”

“Krystal please…..do it for me?”

Krystal’s gaze turned heavenward. Someone up there had it in for her. She was sure of that.

“Under one condition and one condition only,” Krystal said. “I can bring a friend with me.”

“Done!” Sakura agreed.

Krystal groaned. “When is this exactly anyways?”

“I’ll get you the date later. See you!”

“Wait! Sakura!” Krystal looked at the phone. Of course. She’d hung up.

“Well,” Krystal muttered, “let’s see who I can drag into Hell with me…”

 ***One Month Later***  
Why on earth had she agreed to this?

Krystal looked at herself in the mirror. In all honesty, the dress Hannah had designed looked nice on her. The dark blue really brought out her eyes and complimented her hair. It fell in folds down to the floor. Silver flowers crept from her side, across her chest, and over her shoulder to create a single strap.  Krystal had to tuck her hair back behind her ear for the hundredth time.

That was one of the few benefits of this party. She got to spend some time with her best friend and her cousin all while wearing a dress specifically designed for her.

  
Hannah beamed as she looked at her creation. “It’s perfect!”

Krystal looked back at Hannah. Her near black hair was pulled into an elaborate bun. Her dress was a light turquoise that flowed down like a waterfall and her dark tan skin seemed to glow faintly. Silver detailing was just below the bodice.

Behind Hannah sat Sakura. Her light pink dress complimented her blue eyes but her black hair even pulled back stood out against the pink. It was a strapless with silver detailing on the bust. Krystal was a little jealous of how amazing she looked in it.

“I hope people are interested in my designs,” Hannah said. “This could be a great opportunity to find some new clients.”

Krystal sweatdropped. She hadn’t told Hannah this involved mafia, but this was not a place she wanted Hannah to go around looking for business opportunities.

Sakura smiled. “I’m sure you will. These dresses couldn’t be better. It’s not like the people here don’t have the money to hire you.”

Hannah nodded as there was a knock at the door.

“Are you almost done?” a voice growled from the other side.

It only took a moment for Sakura to open the door. “Hayato!”

Krystal looked away as the two kissed. She was happy for her cousin. It was a regular occurrence for people to find their soulmates, though not necessarily common. And Sakura’s just had to be the Vongola’s Storm guardian.

Their first meeting had not gone well and Krystal had tried to avoid interacting with him since then.

Hannah looked positively delighted at the two. “They’re so cute,” she whispered to Krystal.

Krystal grunted. She was going to make an effort to get along with him tonight.

The walk down to the Vongola’s ballroom was short. Krystal still felt uncomfortable with the mass of people making their way inside, especially since they were all mafia.

She recognized Tsuna upon walking in. When Krystal first found out about all the mafia business, Krystal had insisted on meeting who Sakura’s boss would be. It had been a pleasant surprise when Tsuna turned out to be such a good person.

It was clear Hannah’s dresses were getting some attention. They weren’t exactly unique for evening dresses, but Hannah’s own style made them beautiful. When one of the women came up to ask Hannah where her dress was from, Krystal slipped away. Hannah loved people and would be fine.

Krystal stayed to the edge of the room. She watched as Sakura stuck by Gokudera’s side. And Sakura wondered why they didn’t talk as much… Sakura had told her there were other guardians for Tsuna besides Gokudera. If they were as irritating as him, she’d pass on meeting them.

“You can’t stay on the edge like this forever,” Hannah said, taking Krystal’s arm and taking her out.

“I don’t have to stay forever, just to the end of this,” Krystal said.

“But the dresses look better together.”

Hannah gathered up Sakura and soon the three of them were surrounded. Business cards were flying from her hands.

With a sigh, Krystal tried to ignore the people and instead focused on the actual room. The architecture was beautiful and the attention to detail impressed her. Just scanning the edge of room left her amazed at the amount of work that must have gone into making this.

That’s when she spotted him.


	2. Scherzo

Krystal had been focusing on taking it all in, when her eyes passed over him.   
  
He wasn’t looking in her direction but seemed to be scanning the crowd.  A drink was held in his hand.   His blue hair almost matched the color of her dress.  She guessed he was maybe only about a year older or so.  His gaze didn’t turn her way.  
  
In the next moment, Krystal was singing.  
  
Her eyes went wide and there was an immediate blush on her cheeks.  Turning her gaze to the floor and her back to the man, she tried to sing as quietly as possible.  The song felt familiar even though it had never existed before now.  
  
There was no way that man was her soulmate.  No.  He was obviously part of the mafia and she had determined that she would never become involved.  This was impossible.  
  
Krystal put a hand to her cheek.  It was far too warm.  She trembled as the singing stopped.   
  
“Are you ok?” Sakura asked putting a hand on Krystal’s shoulder.  
  
Krystal nodded and stood back up to her full height.  “Sorry.  I just got a little dizzy.”  
  
Sakura sighed.  “Don’t collapse on me here.”  
  
“Trust me, I won’t.”  
   
 **Mukuro's POV**  
These parties were never something he enjoyed.  They were always filled with mafiosi. If it weren’t for Chrome, he might not even bother coming to them.  
  
His fingers fiddled with the glass of wine in his hand.  Carefully he brought it up to his lips for a drink, obscuring the crowd.  
  
Mukuro almost choked halfway through his drink as he started singing.  The glass was immediately set aside.   
  
“Mukuro-sama, are you alright?”  
  
Mukuro straightened at Chrome’s voice and he recovered from the experience.  With the singing he couldn’t answer her, but he was not going to let anyone know this was happening.  
  
Chrome received a curt nod from Mukuro before he turned away from her.  His lips were barely moving and the song came out as a whisper.  His eyes narrowed as he scanned the crowd.   
  
Him having a soulmate was an impossible idea.  Yet, here he was singing.  Who hadn’t he seen before when looking around earlier?  They would have had to initiate this as Mukuro hadn’t been looking at anyone when he started singing.  
  
Mukuro was disgusted with himself.  If his soulmate was here, that meant they were a part of the mafia.  Knowing what they looked like meant he could avoid them in the future.  Which is why he was trying to find someone else singing.  
  
Gokudera’s soulmate was surrounded by a group of women along with two others.  Mukuro hadn’t seen either of the two women come in.  The one was smiling happily and engaging the crowd.  The other had her back turned to him.  She seemed to be trying to hide and was avoiding interaction with the people around her.  
  
If she thought she was being subtle, she was wrong.  
   
 **Krystal’s POV**  
Krystal cursed as the singing started again.  She had been hoping the duet part had already happened or just wasn’t going to happen.  Her back remained turned to him.  
  
With any luck, he wouldn’t try to approach her.  Wouldn’t realize it was her causing him to sing.   
  
When it passed she was grateful that he hadn’t come over.  Suddenly, Sakura was grabbing her arm.   
  
“Come on.  Let me introduce you to the guardians,” Sakura said.  
  
“Eh?” Krystal was pulled away from her thoughts and the crowd.  “Why?”  
  
“Because, we’re family and I want them to meet you.”  
  
Krystal acquiesced only because she thought it would take her mind off the man.  The names and faces of the people she met barely registered.   
  
“Where is he?” Sakura was asking.  She stood in the middle of the ballroom looking around.  “I hope he didn’t already leave.  It wouldn’t be the first time.”  
  
Krystal shrugged.  “How many more?”   She’d only met three, but did not liking being dragged around to do this.  
“Just two more.  Well, maybe one.  Hibari hates people and Mukuro….who knows.  Oh, there he is.”  
  
Sakura started moving and Krystal followed.  They were headed for the edge of the room.  Upon looking, Krystal realized they were headed straight for the man from earlier.   
  
Her face paled slightly.  Not only was he in the mafia, he was a guardian to a mafia boss.  She was screwed.  Someone up there really did have it in for her.   
  
Mukuro looked their way as Sakura weaved them through the crowd.  His eyes instantly narrowed when they met hers.   In the next instant, Mukuro was walking away.  
  
“Hey!  Where’s he going?!” Sakura said annoyed.  “The damn pineapple….”  
  
“I don’t have to meet everyone,” Krystal said.  “If he doesn’t want to, why should he be forced to?”  
  
“I’m not letting him get away.  He always acts like he’s better than us.  And…oh, no…”   
  
“What?” Krystal asked.  Sakura had stopped all of a sudden causing her to almost step and Sakura’s dress.   
  
“He’s headed towards Hibari.  Tsuna’s going to have his head if he starts something here.”  
  
“They don’t like each other?”  
  
Sakura was headed towards Tsuna again.  Krystal scrambled to keep up.  “No.  Those two always fight.”  
  
In the next second there was a crash from the men were.  “Too late,” Sakura muttered.   
  
Krystal looked back.  Due to the crowd she couldn’t see clearly, but some sort of commotion seemed to be happening.   What kind of person was this man?!  
  
“Sh-Should we do something?” Krystal asked.  She really didn’t like fighting and knowing she was surrounded by mafiosi really didn’t help.   
  
“What’s going on?” Hannah had arrived and was standing by Krystal.   
  
“We should leave it to Tsuna,” Sakura said.  “He’s the only one who can stop them now.”  
  
“Does this mean the party’s over then?”  Hannah sounded disappointed.  
   
Krystal hoped that was the case.  The sooner she could get out, the better.   
  
“Probably.  I hope they don’t destroy anything.  If Tsuna’s upset, Gokudera’s going to be upset and then there’s the costs of repairing everything…..”  Sakura shook her head.  “If you want to leave you can.”  
  
The area around the two men had already been cleared and some people were leaving.  Krystal nodded.  “We will.”  
  
Hannah deflated.  “Things were going so well…”  
  
“Welcome to the family,” Sakura said before hurrying off.  
  
“You still got to talk with a lot of people, right?” Krystal was trying to keep Hannah happy as they walked out.  
  
“Yes.  One woman already told me she wants me to design her next dress and is willing to sponsor my studio.”  Hannah became more animated as she spoke.  
  
Krystal smiled.  It never took her long to bounce back.  Even if it sounded like Hannah was being sponsored by the mafia now.  
  
Upon getting back to her apartment that evening, she swore never to go back to mansion.  That man was not her soulmate.  It was some kind of cosmic joke and Krystal did not plan to participate in it.


	3. Second Impressions

**Chapter 3**

***Christmas***

Krystal had been dragged to the Vongola Mansion for Christmas.  Her vow shot down in one go because of tradition. 

Of course, she enjoyed the time with her cousin.  Their movie marathon on Christmas was a tradition.  The problem was they were supposed to have dinner with the rest of the family and go caroling afterwards.

It sounded great until she remembered the man, Mukuro, would be there.  And that’s where Krystal and Sakura were headed.  Despite not wanting to have to see him again, Krystal was in a lovely mood.

She had brought her music along and was playing it as they headed to the kitchen.  Krystal was singing along and skipping.  A large gauzy gold bow was being used as a headband.  She’d upcycled it from one of her presents.

“Please, try to get along with Gokudera,” Sakura said.

“Only if he gets along with me,” Krystal said lightly, shooting a smile back to her cousin. 

She paused outside the door to the kitchen.  Krystal was a guest and would let Sakura in first.  Her mouth watered as she smelled the food from the other side of the door.

Once Sakura had entered, Krystal skipped in behind.  The kitchen was huge, but a table had been set up to the side.  A tree was also nearby.  It seemed like they were the last ones to make it.

Krystal tried to ignore Mukuro.  He was sitting next to another girl who looked similar to him.  Perhaps a sister? 

That’s when she realized where the two empty seats were.  Sakura would be sitting right next to Gokudera.  This left Krystal stuck between Lambo and Sakura.  And directly in front of Mukuro.

Sakura would never allow her to switch and making a fuss about it was out of the question.  Krystal cursed in her head.  There wasn’t going to be any getting out of this.

“Kufufu, I didn’t realize there would be an extra person,” Mukuro said as she and Sakura sat down.

“I told you I was bringing my cousin with me,” Sakura said.  “It’s your own fault if you weren’t paying attention.”

Krystal looked down at the plate in front of her.  This was not happening to her. 

She barely talked through dinner and avoided looking at Mukuro as best as she could.  It was working well until Sakura decided that Krystal wasn’t interacting enough.

Krystal had finished eating a while ago.  Now she was just looking into space in Tsuna’s general direction.  She squeaked as Sakura poked her side.

“Are you still alive?” Sakura asked.

“Yes, yes,” Krystal said slapping her hand away.  “I was until you did that.”

“Did what?” Sakura asked innocently reaching out to poke her again.

“No!” Krystal said moving more towards Lambo’s direction.  “Don’t!”

Sakura only continued trying to tickle her.  Krystal squealed and tried to grab her.  The chair tilted back as Krystal tried to move away. 

There was a screech as the chair fell back.  Krystal felt her head hit the floor and in the next second she was laughing. 

She could hear the others asking if she was alright as she sat up, still laughing.  “Are you ok?” Sakura asked, concerned now that Krystal was on the floor.

“I am going to kill you,” Krystal said in between laughs.  She brought her leg back and kicked Sakura’s chair into the table.

“Hey!  What I did was an accident!”  Sakura choked out.

“It isn’t Sakura’s fault you can’t even sit properly,” Gokudera grumbled.

“I can sit just fine,” Krystal said.  She straightened up.  “I think that bleach you use on your hair finally leached through to your brain.”

“What did you say?” Gokudera growled.

“Oh, nothing,” Krystal smiled at him.  “I’m just trying to get up.”

As she stood up she grabbed his chair and kicked the legs out so that it fell back.  “Oops.”

“You bitch!” Gokudera yelled standing up. 

“You really shouldn’t talk about Sakura that way.”  Krystal blinked as Gokudera pulled out dynamite.  “Yes, because violence solves everything.”

“Krystal, stop,” Sakura said grabbing Gokudera’s arm.

“Ma, ma,” Yamamoto said.  “Calm down.”

“Only if he does,” Krystal said.

“Gokudera…” Sakura looked at him for a moment before Gokudera finally put the dynamite away.

“Damn woman…” Gokudera said under his breath.

“Damn hairball,” Krystal said mockingly.

Gokudera turned back looking like he was about to attack her.  Tsuna stood up suddenly.  “Maybe we should start the caroling.”

Normally, Krystal would enjoy caroling.  Her eyes flickered to Mukuro for a second.  She couldn’t read his expression.  This is not something she wanted to do.  However, Krystal couldn’t think of a way to get out of it without drawing attention to herself.

 

*********

Caroling went better than she expected.  Singing like that calmed her down quicker than she could have guessed it would.  What surprised her though was how well Mukuro’s voice blended with hers.  Where hers was silver, his was gold.

Krystal was able to grab her coat afterwards at the mansion. She slipped the large coat on and with a quick hug to Sakura, started heading back out.

“Krystal,” a voice said.

“Hmm?” Krystal turned to see Tsuna.  “Yes?”

“May I speak with you?”

Krystal’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.  “Yes…”   She couldn’t imagine what he wanted with her.

Tsuna led her down the hall again and rounding the corner, she stiffened when she saw Mukuro.  Mukuro’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“What is this about?” Mukuro asked as Tsuna stopped.

“I know you two are soulmates.” 


	4. All Fired Up

**Chapter 4**

“Excuse me?” Krystal said.  She tried to control her breathing.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Mukuro said.

Both of them stayed focused on Tsuna, refusing to look at the other.  Krystal’s jaw was clenched.

“I know you two are soulmates.  It’s obvious after caroling.  You sounded like you are supposed to go together,” Tsuna said.

“I don’t know what you mean by that,” Mukuro said.

Krystal shook her head.  “I’ve been in chorus for years.  My voice has been trained to blend with others.  You’re reading too much into it.”

Tsuna rubbed his temple.  “Do you not know?  No, you couldn’t ignore the singing.”   He sighed. 

“If that’s all this was about, I’m leaving.”  Mukuro turned and walked down the hall.

“It’s getting late,” Krystal said.  “I need my sleep.”

She left down the other way.  Krystal tried not to run out.  Even if it was just based off the caroling, she couldn’t believe that he really knew about them being soulmates. 

Not that Krystal would ever admit it.  Mukuro was not someone she wanted to associate herself with.  She refused to believe that man was her soulmate.  

*********

**Two Weeks Later**

Krystal had let Sakura drag her to the Vongola Mansion again.  Sakura had brought up the one thing that could make Krystal acquiesce: The library.

It had been enough to perk her interest.  The smell of old books and history had relaxed her instantly.  Sakura had left her alone with what she had said was one of Giotto’s journals. 

Krystal flipped the page carefully and let her fingers run over the ink before continuing to read.  She could almost feel the thought that went into writing all this.  It was so old.

Sitting back she closed her eyes and let her fingers rest on the pages.  It was an almost spiritual experience for her.  If only she could absorb the history like this.

Opening her eyes, she gently shut it.  Krystal picked it up and almost ran back to the shelf where she’d found it.  There might be something else interesting there.

Rounding the corner of one of the shelves, Krystal ran into something solid and the journal fell out of her arms.   She tried to catch it as it fell, but it landed with a thump.

“I’m sorry!” she exclaimed.  It was meant both for the person and the book. 

Kneeling on the floor she scooped it up again.  Anxiously her fingers and eyes scanned the pages and spine.  “I’m sorry….I’m so sorry….I didn’t hurt you, did I?  I won’t drop you again.  I’m sorry.”

“It’s just a book,” said the voice above her.

Anger flared up for a second even as she realized who it is.  Krystal stood up.  She was hugging the book to her chest and stroking it spine.  

“Just a book?!” Krystal repeated.  “Do you know the things this book has seen?!  The history?!  The work and care that went into writing it?!   Just a book!   Like you’re just a person!”

Krystal took a deep breath, trying not to completely explode. 

Mukuro sighed.  “It’s a book that belongs to the mafia.  It’s not important.”

“Not important?!”  Krystal was staring at him.  Her lip curled as she passed him.  “I should have expected as much from a mafioso.  All brawn and no brain.”

“I am not a part of the mafia.”

Krystal turned to watch Mukuro walk off.  His voice had been cold and serious.  But, how wasn’t he?

Hurriedly set the book down on the closest shelf and took off after him.  Krystal caught up with him in the hall and stood in his way.  Squaring her shoulders, she looked him in the eye. 

It was the first time she had looked at him and truly paid attention.  She felt a bit a surprise when she realized his eyes were two different colors.  It was a shaken off though.

“What do you mean you’re not part of the mafia?  You’re one of Tsuna’s guardians, aren’t you?”

His eyes narrowed at her.  “I am not a part of the mafia.  I am only here because of a deal.  A favor.”

“A favor?” Krystal repeated.  Her curiosity was taking control.  “What favor?”

“I assist the Vongola.  I am not a part of it.”

“So, you’re not part of the mafia?”  Krystal was trying to make sense of it.  Some part of her was relieved. 

There was a dark chuckle from Mukuro.  “I hate the mafia.”

“Why?” Krystal asked.  “I mean, whether or not you like you’re involved.”

“That’s none of your business,” he said.

“Well,” Krystal said stubbornly, “I’ve made it my business.  Why do you hate it and yet still stay involved with it?”

Mukuro’s eyes narrowed.  “I already stated that it’s a favor.  Why would I be part of an organization that gave me this eye?  That put me in the Vinidicare?”  The way he gestured made his disgust clear.

“I think your eye’s pretty though.”  Krystal said it automatically, her eyes furrowed in slight confusion.  Her own eyes immediately went wide after she’d said it.   “I-I mean…..They’re….um…”

A small smile seemed to come to Mukuro.  “Interesting.”

“Hmm?”  A small chirp same out of her as her head tilted to the side.  Krystal tapped her foot on the ground lightly in annoyance and covered her mouth.  She could feel a blush creeping onto her cheeks.  Krystal looked anywhere but at Mukuro. 

Mukuro moved around her and started to continue walking.  “Ah…” Krystal quickly moved back in his path.  “What’s the Vindicare?”

The look he gave her was incredulous.  “It’s the prison run by the Vindice.”

Krystal really should just leave at that time.  She’d already got the impression at the party that he was dangerous, even in the mafia.  It was best to drop it.  Her curiosity was already winning out again though.  “Who is that?”

Mukuro shook his head before walking past her.  “Are you really this ignorant?”

Krystal stood there with her mouth slightly open as she watched him walk away.  “Well, excuse me for not being a part of the mafia,” she growled.  Turning back to the library she held her head up.  If he was going to act that way…


	5. Birthday Troubles

**Chapter 5**

**Feb 6**

Despite her better judgement, Krystal had taken to hanging around the Vongola HQ more.  She mainly stayed in the library.  She’d gotten used to watching the people come and go enough that she could recognize many of them. 

The library was also a good place to work on her homework from the Conservatory.  Nobody bothered her and the space itself was very comforting.  She’d claimed one of the large leather chairs for her own.

There had been a few more times she had spotted Mukuro in there.  For the most part she’d ignored him. 

She didn’t know what she was doing at the HQ on this day.  There were a million better ways she could think of to spend her birthday than the headquarters of one of the most powerful mafia families out there.

Perhaps it was because Krystal was hoping that Sakura would remember her birthday.  It had been a long time since she had actually enjoyed her birthday.  After he father left she’d been stuck with Heather.  Heather mainly made sure to remind Krystal that she shouldn’t have been born.

At any rate, she’d left her bookbag in the library while she explored the HQ.  Despite all the times she’d been there, Krystal hadn’t wandered far.

The place was nice.  A little too formal for her if she was being honest. 

Her feet moved in rhythm with the song in her head.  She never missed a beat as she peered into the rooms eagerly. 

It was about halfway down one hallway that she found it.  Krystal almost passed it she was moving so fast.  Breaking her beat, she skipped back to look again. 

It was a piano.  A simple piano like the ones at school.

Moving in Krystal opened it and let her fingers run across the keys.  No chips or scratches could be seen.  It was almost a disappointment.  Scratches gave them character. 

Sitting down she noticed a small name written down by the leg of the piano.  Moving to get a closer look, she could see it read, “Lavinia”.

Krystal blinked.  Perhaps that was the name of whoever’s piano this was.  Or maybe somebody named the piano.  Students back at the Conservatory had named the piano in the concert hall “Margaret” for some reason.  It was generally accepted. 

“So, are you called Lavinia?” she asked it gently as she sat down on the padded bench. 

She played a few scales and simple pieces before realizing she had nothing to play.  All her music was still in her bookbag and Krystal had always been terrible at memorizing. 

Standing up she opened the bench to see a single old blue book in there.  It was a book of Chopin’s complete waltzes.  Her eyes lit up at that.  Chopin had always been relaxing.

Pulling it out, Krystal set it up and sat back down.   It wasn’t long before she was lost in the music. 

In the middle there was a growl at the door.  Krystal startled and looked up to see Gokudera standing there. 

“What the hell are you doing woman?!” he snapped.

“I-I’m sorry,” Krystal stuttered as she stood up.  He hand moved to close the book as she stepped back. 

Gokudera moved and snatched the book up.  His glare bored into her.  “Who do you think you are?!  Didn’t you ever learn to touch things that aren’t yours?!”

“I’m sorry,” Krystal said heading for the door.  “I didn’t know.  The door was open and-“

“Get the hell out of here,” he said. 

Krystal was on the verge of tears.  She felt her back hit something on the way out. 

“Kufufu, she said she didn’t know,” said the voice from behind.

She looked to see Mukuro glaring at Gokudera.  This wasn’t good.

“This is none of your damn business, pineapple head.”

The irritation that Gokudera’s comment caused Mukuro was clear.  Krystal tried not to run down the corridor until she was out of sight.  She took off once her foot was around the corner. 

She randomly opened one of the doors and found herself in what seemed to be a small apartment.  For a moment she wondered if anyone lived there.  It was mostly empty.

Krystal wiped away the tears even though more continued to come.  ‘Deep breaths,’ she thought. 

Opening the door she found a small closet.  Stepping in and shutting the door, Krystal curled up in the towels.

******

“Hello?”

Krystal’s eyes fluttered open but closed again at the bright light.   She was comfortable and didn’t like being woken up.

“Uh….excuse me….”

This wasn’t her bed though.  Groggily she opened her eyes slowly to see someone in the doorway.  For a second she thought it might be Mukuro based off the hair, but this wasn’t him.  It was the girl.   It was….

“Chrome?” Krystal asked quietly.  Her eyebrows furrowed together. 

“What are you doing here?” Chrome asked as Krystal sat up with a yawn.

“I….I just…”  Krystal didn’t know how to explain herself.  She was too embarrassed and prideful to admit that what had happened with Gokudera had upset her.  “What time is it?”

“Almost six,” Chrome said backing up to let her out.

“Six?!” Krystal said standing up in surprise.  She yelped as her head hit the shelf above her. 

“Oh God….” She said holding her head where it hit.  She grimaced in pain.

“Are you ok?!” Chrome said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“I’m fine,” Krystal said.  She shrugged off the hand and stepped out.  “Or, at least I will be.”

Looking around Krystal noticed more in the small space that should have told her someone was living here.  It really was obvious now that she thought about it. 

“Your name’s Krystal, right?” Chrome asked.  “Your Mukuro-sama’s soulmate.”

Krystal growled lightly.  “I’m not his soulmate.  Aren’t you like his sister or something though?”

Chrome smiled lightly.  “We’re not related though he’s like an older brother to me.”

“Oh,” she said simply.  Krystal didn’t know what to say.  She’d assumed they were siblings based off what she’d seen.  They certainly looked like it.  “I’m sorry.”

Chrome shook her head.  “I’m not surprised.  Are you ok though?  You look like you’ve been crying.”

“I haven’t been,” Krystal lied while heading for the door.  “I’m just tired.  Sorry to bug you.  See you.”

“Goodbye,” Chrome said as Krystal left.


	6. Bridge of Sighs

**Chapter 6**

Krystal made her way back to the library to get her bookbag.  That had the key for her apartment and her homework for tomorrow. 

“Krystal!”

She turned at the sound of her name as she picked the bag off the floor.  “Sakura?”

Sakura grabbed her arm.  “Come with me.”

“Why?”  Despite being awake, Krystal wasn’t quite awake.  “Where are taking me?”

“Just follow me,” Sakura said.

Krystal frowned.  “Why…”

“Trust me.”

Sighing she slung the bag over her shoulder.  “Fine.  Lead the way.”

Krystal tried to pay attention as Sakura led her through the headquarters.  Had she been down this hallway before?  It looked familiar.  But no.  She would have remembered that painting.  After several turns, she quit trying to figure out where she was and instead focused on the drone of Sakura’s excited voice.

“Here we are!” Sakura said opening a door and nudging Krystal through.

The first thing Krystal noticed was Hannah seated at the table.  “Happy birthday!!” Hannah cheered.

“You didn’t think I’d forget, did you?” Sakura teased.

Krystal dodged the poke to her side.  “Don’t you have work?” she asked Hannah as she hugged her.

“I run my own business,” she replied.  “I can take a vacation whenever I want.”

Krystal rolled her eyes.  “Ah, yes.  I forgot.  You make your own paycheck.”

“That’s right!  Now, please, cut it already.  They smell too good and I’m hungry,” Hannah said.

The smell of brownies hit her as soon as Hannah mentioned them.  Krystal’s mouth watered at the sight of them.  “Do I have to be all polite about it and cut them?  Or can I just stick my hands in and claim it all for myself?”

“We want some too!” Sakura said hitting Krystal upside the head lightly.

“If you insist,” Krystal said cutting into the gooey mess.  “It looks like Dad’s recipe.”

“That’s because it is,” Hannah said, quickly grabbing one of the newly cut brownies. 

“I had the recipe lying around and thought you’d like,” Sakura said.

Krystal but her arms around her friends and pulled them in.  “I love you guys.  But I do hope you know I’m going to eat half this pan.”

“No less than I expected,” Sakura said.

“I got one,” Hannah said taking a seat.  “That’s all I need.  But I can’t wait to see what you think of your present~!”

“No presents yet!” Sakura said.  “She’ll ruin them with her fingers.”

Krystal licked the chocolate off her finger.  “All clean.”

“That doesn’t count as clean, Krystal,” Sakura scolded.

“It counts as clean to me,” she pouted. 

“Kufufu, this is not what I was expecting,” Mukuro’s voice sounded from the doorway.

Krystal turned to see him in the doorway.

“What are you doing here?” Sakura asked.

Hannah was looking over at Mukuro curiously though she didn’t say a word. 

Mukuro smirked and ignored Sakura’s question as he walked over.  “I think I’ll have one, too.”

Krystal reacted the second his hand started for the brownies and smacked it away.  “Those are mine!” she said, glaring up at him from where she sat on the counter. 

“Oya?” Mukuro looked at her.

“You didn’t even ask,” Krystal said.

“I don’t get some sort of reward for helping you earlier?”  The smirk only seemed to widen at Krystal’s blush.

“You did that of your own volition.  There was never any reward,” Krystal argued.

Suddenly he grabbed her chin and brought her face in.  Krystal stiffened in surprise as her eyes went wide.  “There wasn’t, was there?” Mukuro asked.

In the next second he let go and walked out of the room.  It took a few seconds for Krystal to shake it off and look down at the brownies.  A wave of annoyance crashed over her as she saw a brownie missing from the pan.

“Come back here!” she yelled, running after Mukuro.  “I told you those are mine!”

“Oya?” Mukuro turned back with a smirk as Krystal sprinted towards him.

“That wasn’t fair!”  Krystal stared defiantly at him.  She knew he took a brownie but couldn’t see it.

Mukuro chuckled.  “Life isn’t fair.”

Her eyes immediately furrowed.  “That doesn’t mean we have to act like it.”

There was a sigh from Mukuro.  “Do you intend to continue getting in my way?”

“You owe me a brownie.”

“I owe you nothing.”

Krystal and Mukuro stared at each other for a minute before Mukuro suddenly moved around her and left. A huff escaped Krystal as she watched him leave. 

“You still owe me!” she barked.

With no reply from him, Krystal returned back to the kitchen.  “I’m going to kill him,” she muttered under her breath.  “I swear, I’m going to kill that man.”

“You don’t really want to kill your soulmate, do you?” Hannah asked as Krystal entered.

“We’re not soulmates!” Krystal protested.

“So you’re both still in denial,” Sakura said taking a quick drink.  “Tsuna won’t like that.”

“I’m not in denial about anything!  We’re not soulmates!   And what does that have to do with Tsuna anyways?!?!”

“Mukuro’s one of his guardians.”  Sakura raised an eyebrow at Krystal.  “Of course it concerns him.  Denial isn’t good for your health.  And Mukuro’s never been the happiest of the guardians.  I think Tsuna though things would improve if he found his soulmate.”

“I’m not his soulmate,” Krystal growled.  Crossing her arms, she took her seat again and a bit of brownie.  “And he isn’t mine.”

“But weren’t you singing at-“

“We’re not soulmates!” Krystal snapped, cutting off Hannah.  Letting her head drop to the table, she sighed.  “Sorry.  We just aren’t.”

“Let’s move on to presents!” Hannah said cheerfully.

Krystal raised her head.  “Presents aren’t necessary…”

“Yes, they are,” Sakura said with a light hit to Krystal’s head.

“Mow~!  Don’t hit me!”

“Just open something!”

Krystal spent the rest of the night with her friends before heading home, but her mind wandered back to Sakura’s comment.  They weren’t soulmates.  That was one thing Krystal was sure of, but she was curious about Mukuro regardless now.

 

 

 

 

 

_WOO!  Finally got around to another chapter.  Motivation is so thoroughly lacking, though I really want to finish all this._


	7. Trapped

**Chapter 7**

For the past few weeks, whenever Krystal was at the Vongola HQ, she’d taken to trying to figure out what Mukuro does.  She knew he was a guardian, but wasn’t sure what he did in that job. 

She wasn’t interested in him.  It was nothing like that.  It was more of wanting unravel this mystery.  At least, that’s what she told herself.

There were times during this she felt sure he knew she was there.  Admittedly, a couple times it had unnerved her so badly that she’d run away.  And yet other times…she couldn’t help but giggle.  Such as when he’d trip or get a little too dramatic.  He didn’t even seem to realize how dramatic he was. 

And aside from Chrome, he didn’t seem to interact much with the others. 

But there was no way she could develop feelings for him.  The last time she had fallen for someone, it hadn’t ended well.  There would be no repeats of that.  However, she didn’t feel as antagonistic towards him as before though.

Today she’d been looking around trying to find him after dropping her stuff in the library.  She was beginning to feel a bit disappointed when there wasn’t any sign of him.

“Krystal?”

She turned to see the speaker and felt a bit of surprise to see Tsuna.  Trying to pretend like she hadn’t just been searching for Mukuro, Krystal smiled brightly at him.  “What is it?”

“Could you come with me?” Tsuna said.

“Excuse me?”  Confusion was written on her face.  Her mind began to sort through everything she’d done while at the HQ.  She hadn’t done anything wrong, had she?

“I just want to talk,” Tsuna said gently.

His smile put Krystal a little at ease, but she still couldn’t help the sinking feeling in her stomach.  She followed Tsuna down the hall way trying to ignore it.  “I swear, whatever happened, it wasn’t my fault.  I was just looking around.”

“You were looking for Mukuro, weren’t you?” Tsuna said.

Krystal blushed.  “Why would I be looking for him?”

“You’ve been watching him for a while.  I assumed you were trying to find him again.”

“I-I was not looking for him!” Krystal protested.  “And I haven’t been watching him!  I’m not a stalker!”

“I thought you’d finally taken an interest in him,” Tsuna sighed.

“He’s a pretentious, dramatic asshole who won’t admit when he’s wrong!” Krystal countered.  “Besides, he still owes me a brownie.”

“So, you like him,” Tsuna said.

“I didn’t say that!” Krystal’s blush only increased.  “That’s the opposite of what I said!”

“Please, step in here.”  Tsuna opened the door for her and she found herself in a small office with a desk, couple chairs, and a couch.

“Tsuna, wh-“ Krystal stopped mid-sentence as she saw Mukuro on the couch.

Mukuro chuckled.  “What is this about, Sawada?”

“Sit down,” Tsuna said, gesturing towards the couch.

Krystal’s mouth formed a tight line.  This was not a situation she wanted to be in.  It suddenly felt too much like school again when she’d gotten in trouble.  Cautiously, she took a seat on the far end of the couch from Mukuro.

“I’m sorry,” Tsuna said stepping towards them. 

The next moment Krystal felt cold around her wrist.  Instinctively she brought her hand up to see what it was and nearly panicked at the extra weight.  “Wh-What?!”

“Sawada, what are you doing?” Mukuro asked darkly.

Krystal was staring in horror at what she now realized was a handcuff on her wrist.  She extended her arm and tried to avoid touching Mukuro.  Her chest was tight as she looked up at Tsuna.  So long as she wasn’t looking at Mukuro.

“I don’t know any other way to make you two listen,” Tsuna said taking a seat across from them.  “You two are soulmates.  Why do you keep denying it?”

“We aren’t soulmates,” Krystal said.

“My soulmate would not be a mafioso,” Mukuro said.

“Excuse me?!”  She turned suddenly to him before Tsuna could say anything.  “I am NOT a part of the mafia!!  I never would be!!  I hate the mafia!!” 

Krystal couldn’t help the pout that showed up on her face.  This man had the audacity to get upset when she rightfully thought he was in the mafia and then turn around and accuse her of the same?!  She couldn’t quite read the expression on his face.

“Ah, Krystal…” Tsuna started, trying to calm her down.

“You want me to believe he’s my soulmate?!”  She pointed at Mukuro but immediately recoiled when her fingers brushed his hand, her anger immediately dissipated.

“Sawada Tsunayoshi, I believe it would be best if you let us both go,” Mukuro said.

Krystal looked away from both of them.  She was already feeling ashamed at her outburst.  The feeling of the handcuff on her wrist was disturbing to her.  She’d always hated to be restrained.  All she wanted was to get out.  She could feel the tears welling at her eyes. 

Using her free hand she wiped them away before they could take shape.  Did she have to cry with every strong emotion?!

There was a sigh from Tsuna and out of the corner of her eye she could see him place his face in his hands.  “Alright, you can go.”

The second the handcuffs were off, Krystal was flying out the door.  It didn’t take long for her  to grab her things and be completely out of HQ.  She didn’t feel right again until she was back in her apartment.

Leaning against her bed, Krystal put her head in between her knees.  Just when she was starting to think that maybe she could even be friends with Mukuro, Tsuna had to interfere. 

‘ _I’ll just ignore him_ ,’ she thought.  ‘ _He doesn’t care for me, so I won’t bother with him._ ’


	8. Overkill

**Chapter 8**

Little over a week and Krystal was back at HQ.  She just couldn’t stay away, could she? 

Krystal had planned to make a surprise visit to see Sakura.  The problem with making a surprise visit was that she didn’t know where Sakura would be.  And if possible, Krystal wanted to avoid running into Mukuro. 

Peering into another one of the rooms and seeing nothing, Krystal moved on.  Knowing her luck, Sakura had probably left to go on a date with Gokudera or something. 

“Geez, why does this always happen to me?” Krystal said under her breath.  If Sakura was going to disappear like this, she would have been better off practicing her concert piece. 

There was a flash of blue hair at the end of the hallway and Krystal immediately hid.  Carefully looking again, she could see Mukuro walking out of Tsuna’s office with a folder. 

Her curiosity was piqued again despite what she’d said about not bothering with him.  She hadn’t seen him do any true work as a guardian before now, and it looked like this might be it.  Debating for a minute as to what to do, she quickly hurried after him.

*****

It had been a mistake to follow him.  That was clear now. 

Krystal was sitting where she hid in the bushes, trying not to give herself away.  She knew Vongola were mafia.  She knew that even if Mukuro wasn’t directly mafia, he still worked in the Vongola.  She knew she should have seen this coming.

Mukuro had killed them.  He’d really killed them. 

Her hands covered her mouth as she shut her eyes.  Even from where she was she’d been able to hear it.  The sound wouldn’t leave her. 

She needed to get out of here.  Krystal tried to focus on getting up, but just felt sick at the thought. 

This only confirmed for her that this man couldn’t be her soulmate.  The universe had been lying to her.  She couldn’t love someone so unaffected by this. 

It took a bit, but Krystal finally managed to get up and get out of there.

*****

Krystal hated having to stop by the Vongola HQ after that.  She should have left her stuff in the car instead of the library.

“Krystal!”

She slung her pack over her shoulder as she turned to Sakura. 

“You’re here!”  Sakura said cheerfully.

“Yep,” Krystal said.  Her voice sounded more monotone than she intended. 

“What’s wrong?” Sakura asked.  She put a hand on Krystal’s shoulder.  “Did something happen?”

Krystal looked down.  She loved Sakura, but wasn’t sure if she should say anything.  “I just…I saw Mukuro…”  Her voice was cracking slightly.  “He…He killed those people…”

“Oh.”   Sakura didn’t sound that surprised.

“Did you know?” Krystal asked.   Sakura’s face said it all though.

“It’s not as bad as it seems, Krystal,” she said.  “We had to-“

“You HAD to?!” Krystal said desperately.  “What do you mean you HAD to?!  They’re human.  They have feelings.  Families.  Friends.  And it’s ok to kill them like that?!”

“Krystal, you don’t understand.  The things they were doing-“

“Can they really be that different from the Vongola?  You say the Vongola is different from other families, but aren’t you still mafia?!”  Tears were starting to stream down her face.  “That man can not be my soulmate!”

Sakura looked somewhat distressed.  “Please, Krystal-“

“I’ll see you later,” Krystal said, nearly running out of the library.

Only a few feet out of the library she saw Chrome. 

“Did you really mean that?” Chrome asked.

Krystal shook her head in annoyance.  “Of course I did.  Killing people like that…”   She almost seemed to sway slightly at the thought of it. 

“Do you hate Mukuro-sama?”

Krystal blinked and looked at Chrome.  “Hate?”   The thought hadn’t even crossed her mind.  Was she upset?  Yes.  Did she hate him?  She wasn’t sure.

“I know Mukuro-sama cares about you.  He’d be upset if he thought you hated him.”

It was hard to stop herself from laughing.  “He CARES?  He sure has a strange way of showing he cares!”

“Mukuro-sama doesn’t want you to get hurt.  He keeps Ken and Chikusa away too because he doesn’t want them getting involved in the mafia.” 

The names were unfamiliar to Krystal, but she wasn’t going to stop and ask. “Excuse me, I have rehearsal in a couple hours and need to warm up.” 

Without another word, she hurried back to her car.

*****

**A Week Later**

Krystal had managed to avoid going back, though she felt a tad guilty.  Even though she didn’t believe them, Chrome’s words bugged her.  Mukuro hadn’t been a completely terrible person after all.

He clearly cared about Chrome and had helped her out before.   Even if he was a brownie thief.  And if Chrome was right, then he probably cared in other ways that she didn’t even notice.

The words on the page in front of her had stopped making sense a long time ago.  She couldn’t stop thinking about Mukuro for a while now, though she still refused to acknowledge her feelings. 

Ever since that day she’d had nightmares about it.  Nothing very solid, but enough to leave her with fear and worry when she woke up. 

Sakura had called a few times through the week.  Krystal hadn’t picked up a single one.  Regardless of what the other family had done, there should have been a better solution that killing them. 

Putting the book down, she stretched herself out on the couch.  She should think about something else or start on her homework. 

Krystal almost didn’t hear the soft knock at her door.  After a couple more times though she realized it wasn’t in her imagination.  “Hold on a minute!” Krystal called as she got up.

Maybe it was Sakura.  Sakura had blown up her phones with calls and messages in the past 48 hours. 

“Hello?” Krystal said, opening the door.


	9. Seeing Red

**Chapter 9**

“Chrome?” Krystal said in surprise.  The last person she had been expecting to see was Chrome.

“Please come back to HQ,” Chrome said.

Krystal was a little taken aback.  “Excuse me?”

“It’s Mukuro-sama.  He isn’t doing very well and I don’t know what to do.”  Now that Krystal looked a little closer she could see that Chrome was a bit distressed. 

“What are you talking about?” Krystal asked. 

“Mukuro-sama won’t let me help him,” Chrome continued.  “He’s hurt, but…”

Krystal sighed.  “How am I supposed to help?”  She tried to suppress the worry in her chest.  It was probably just a cold or minor cut or something. 

“Come back with me.  He might listen to you.”

“Listen to me?  If he won’t listen to you, he’s not going to listen to me.”  Moving back, Krystal started to shut the door.

“Wait!” Chrome grabbed the door.  “I know you care about him.  And even if you don’t, he cares about you.  Please…”

Sighing, Krystal looked towards the ceiling.  There had to be some god up there laughing at her.  “Ok, fine.  Take me.”

“Thank you,” Chrome said as Krystal grabbed her wallet. 

“Don’t thank me yet.  I haven’t done a single thing.”

*****

**Vongola HQ**

“Mukuro-sama?” Chrome said as they approached his door.

“I thought I told you to leave me alone.”

Krystal about jumped at the voice.  Looking around she tried to figure out where it was coming from.

“Mukuro-sama, what are you doing?” Chrome asked.

‘Mukuro-‘  Krystal’s eyes went wide when her eyes settled on the bird in front of Chrome.  “MUKURO?!”

“It’s tiring to keep this up,” the owl spoke.  “Leave.”

“It’s speaking like it’s Mukuro,” Krystal said.

Chrome looked back at her, “It is Mukuro”. 

“I’m going in,” Krystal said.  She wasn’t dealing with this.  If she could just see him…

“Don’t do that!” Mukurowl said, diving for her hand as she reached for the doorknob. 

“You’re not stopping me,” Krystal said opening it.  “Chrome said you’re hurt and I’m not dealing with you like that.”

“Krystal…” Chrome started. 

It was dim inside and it took a couple seconds for her eyes to adjust.  She thought she could see a figure on the couch and moved closer.

Her eyes went wide as she saw Mukuro on the couch.  He had several cuts and his arm seemed to be at a strange angle…

“What the hell happened?!” Krystal said.  Anger and shock rippled through her.  And was that blood?

Her face turned pale as she looked at Chrome.  “Why didn’t you take him to the hospital?!”

“Mukuro-sama didn’t want-“

“You’re not taking me to the hospital,” Mukurowl spoke.

Krystal growled as she went to what she assumed was the closet.  “And what are you going to do to stop me?  You’re in no condition to.”

Grabbing a towel she went back and wrapped it around his arm.  She didn’t want to risk it getting worse when she moved him. 

“Don’t do that!” Mukurowl said. 

Krystal’s anger was rising.  Part of it was finding out this had happened to him and part of it was Mukuro’s insistence. 

Standing up she sent Mukurowl a death glare that could rival Hibari’s.  “I am taking you to the damn hospital whether or not you like it.  You can damn well try to kill me but for the love of all things good you are going to shut your mouth and let me take you.”

Carefully she picked him up bridal style and started walking.  Thankfully Chrome informed her of the Vongola’s medical team in the HQ. 

After getting him there, Krystal sat down in the waiting room.  Chrome was seated next to her as they waited.  Mukurowl was on the nearby table. 

“What are you still doing in that body?” Krystal asked.  She didn’t really understand how it worked, but he should still return to his normal one. 

“I don’t need that body right-“

He was cut off by Krystal grabbing him.  “You’ve made me worry enough.  Return to your body right now or I swear I’ll kick you back into it myself.”

She was given a glare by the owl but she rushed to get a better grip when it went loose.  “Woah…”   She hadn’t expected him to listen like that.

“I can take him,” Chrome offered.

Krystal shook her head.  “It’s fine.  He’s fluffy anyways.  Besides, if he tries to run off, I’ll stop him.”

Sitting back with the owl on her lap, she closed her eyes and let her mind wander.  This had not been what she expected to do today.  On one hand, she was happy she’d come out because he needed help.  On the other hand, he was immensely frustrating. 

The fact that she’d been as angry and worried as she had didn’t sit well with her either.  They weren’t soulmates and she wasn’t going to let that influence her. 

When Sakura and some of the others came in, she continued to pretend to sleep.  She didn’t care what they said. 

After a while they were finally allowed to see him.  Krystal had to stop herself from running in.

“Oh, you’re awake,” Sakura said.

“I have been this whole time,” Krystal said standing up, still holding Mukurowl. 

“You have?!” Sakura exclaimed. 

“Yes.  Now please, I’m going to go see Mukuro.”  She was more anxious than she thought she would be.  It probably had to do with the fact that she was the one who brought him in.

Krystal paused in the doorway before moving in.  Chrome had already beaten her in and was sitting by the bed.

“Are you alright?” Krystal asked as she stepped in.  Hospitals weren’t the most comfortable place for her.

“I’m fine,” Mukuro said.

Krystal carefully put the owl by the bed.  “Are you sure?  You seemed pretty badly hurt.   What were you even doing that got you hurt like that?”

“I’m sure,” he said.  He seemed to be avoiding looking her in the eye.

“I’m serious,” Krystal said.  “What were you doing?”

“I fell off a ledge.”

“You fell off a LEDGE,” Krystal said.  She was dumbfounded.  “How the hell do you fall off a **ledge**?!  No.  WHY WERE YOU **NEAR** A LEDGE?!?”

“K-Krystal-“ Chrome started.

She placed a hand behind her head and look towards the ceiling.  “Do you even know **worried** we were?!  Chrome came to me asking to help you.  And all because you slipped off a ledge and refused to get **help**?!  What on earth were you thinking?!?!  I wasted my time coming here and waiting for you to wake up so I could make sure you were ok!!  And you act like it’s perfectly fine and normal!”

Krystal sighed and looked at Mukuro who still wasn’t looking at her.  “Gah!  You’re never going to get it through your skull that people care for you, are you?”

She was only going to say more if she stuck around.  Turning she stormed out the door.

“Krystal, are you ok?” Sakura asked, approaching her as she entered the waiting room.

“One of these days, I’m going to kill him,” Krystal said, pointing down the hallways.  “I swear to God…if he continues acting like that I’m going to dropkick his ass to the Arctic.  And I’m going to go home before I do something I regret.”

A laugh came out of Krystal’s mouth as she walked out the door.  “Fell off a ledge….”


	10. Thick As A Brick

**Chapter 10**

Krystal looked around again from her seat in the library.  She hadn’t seen Mukuro around in the last week and it was starting to worry her.  She’d been upset with him but hadn’t expected him to disappear.  It felt kind of strange to not have him around.

Naturally, she couldn't ask anyone what happened to him.  No way in hell would she admit to caring for that bastard.  Yet….

Setting aside her work, she got up and started wandering again.  The hard floor punctuated each of her steps, almost creating a type of white noise for her mind.  Much of her time at the HQ before had been spent trying to nonchalantly look for Mukuro now.  And before, she'd even started a few conversations with him.  But now she was desperately looking.  At least one sign that he was still doing ok after she stormed off.

A few days ago Tsuna had stopped her and told her Mukuro was fine.  While she trusted him, it was hard without seeing evidence with her own eyes.  It made it all the harder when Chrome seemed to avoiding her.

If the fool could fall off a ledge and injure himself so badly, she could barely imagine how badly he might get hurt doing other tasks. 

At this point, it might be worth asking someone.  But it would be too embarrassing to ask Tsuna.  Sakura was a no go.  Perhaps Chrome…she was quiet and didn’t seem like she’d tell…  But she'd been avoiding Krystal.  Regardless, the girl would be her best option.

Krystal redirected her strides to the garden.  “Chrome?”

There was a flash of purple hair and Krystal almost ran forward.   “Chrome!  Wait up!”  Moving forward, Krystal grabbed her wrist.

The smaller girl pulled for a few seconds before freezing.  Krystal could feel her nervousness.

“I just have a quick question.”  She didn’t let go, afraid that Chrome would run off.  “I haven’t seen Mukuro around lately and was wondering how he’s recovering.  Do you know where he is?” 

“Mukuro-sama isn’t here,” Chrome replied.

Krystal held back a sigh.  “I know.  That’s why I’m asking where he is.  I swear, if he’s fallen off another ledge…  But it’s weird without him around.”

Chrome nodded.  “It is.”

“There’s no one to steal my brownies,” Krystal commented with a slight frown.  "Besides, we both know how stubborn he can be..."

“Kokuyo will be safer for him,” Chrome said softly.  “Especially since Boss thinks he won’t be attack-“  She froze mid-sentence and her eyes went wide.  “I need to go.”

Krystal’s grip tightened and she bent Chrome’s hand back a bit.  “What did you say?”

“I said Kokuyo would be safer.”

“And then…?  After that.  What did you say?”  Krystal couldn’t believe what she heard. 

“Kokuyo will be safer.  Mukuro-sama likes it there and Boss said that-there-won’t-be-any-families-there-to-attack-him.”  Chrome spoke at such a rapid pace that she almost couldn’t be understood.  She refused to look in Krystal’s direction.

Krystal closed her eyes as she processed the information.  She had heard of Kokuyo before from Sakura.  He’d fled all the way to Japan.  And from what Chrome said….  “Say that again.  But slower.”

“M-Mukuro-sama was attacked…by another..family…I know him.  I can tell when he’s lying…He lied to everyone…  But…we found his weapon…”

Krystal tuned out and felt herself let go of Chrome.  He’d been attacked.  Because of another family.  She’d only thought of what he’d done to that family before.  It never crossed her mind that he may be harmed.  

A choking noise came from her as she turned away.  Covering her mouth, Krystal tried to ignore the burning sensation of guilt in her chest.  She couldn’t see clearly from the tears gathering in her eyes.  He’d lied to her about it.  That was the worst part. 

“I’m sorry.”

Chrome’s voice broke through for a moment.  Startling, Krystal jerked upright.  When had she started kneeling like that.

“Excuse me,” she said.  “I need to…go….”

Krystal couldn’t leave fast enough.

 

**3 Days Later**

Ignoring all phone calls, Krystal had spent the past few days packing her bag that was now being dragged along behind her as she rushed to the plane.  At first she had just upset. He'd lied and she'd fallen for it.  She partially blamed herself.

She shouldn’t have been upset though.  It was stupid of her to be.  They hadn’t been close.  After half of their interactions she had to repress the urge to slap him.  Although, he hadn’t seemed so bad before Tsuna locked them together.

He’d seemed almost kind during some of the times she’d talk with him.  And not near as temperamental when she watched him.  Occasionally she would swear that he knew and would show off for her. 

And then others it seemed like he was trying to keep her away.  Such as lying to her. 

But now, she was just angry.  Angry that he had lied to her.  Angry that he had lied to Chrome.  Angry that he had left.  Angry at herself for ignoring his health.  Angry that he’d pushed her away.  And angry she'd let him do that.

He was human.  He surely needed to trust someone.  But he so obviously trusted no one.

The flight was long and Krystal barely got any sleep.  And the travel from the airport to Kokuyo was torture.  It was only upon being dropped off in Kokuyo that she realized she had no idea where to look for Mukuro.

The buzzing in her pocket that had started several minutes ago finally became too much.

“What do you want?” Krystal snapped upon answering the call.

“Where the hell have you been?!”  Sakura almost yelled in her ear.

“I happen to be in Japan.  And after traveling for so long, whatever you have to say had better be damn good.” 

“You’re in JAPAN!”  Sakura’s voice was incredulous.  “Why are you there?”

Krystal sighed.  “Because I’m going to give Mukuro a piece of my mind.”

“Please, do not tell me you’re in Kokuyo.”

“I am.  And I’m heading for Mukuro.”

“Fuck.  Krystal, wait.  Don’t do that.  Come-“

Krystal hung up the phone.  “Sorry.  Not happening.”

Looking around, had no idea where to start.  Perhaps the shops down the main street?  He might be there…

But he wasn’t.  Having gone through nearly every shop, she hadn’t seen him.  She couldn’t come all this way and give up, though.  No way was she going to do that. 

At this point, she was considering asking someone.  Her Japanese was a bit rusty, but still should be fine.  And, if they really called this place home for so long, someone might know his location. 

Krystal turned back to the person at the counter of the store.  “Excuse me,” she asked softly.

He looked up.  “Is there something I can help you with?”

“Actually, I was wondering if you might know where my friend is.  He used to live here and just recently came back.  Mukuro is his name.”  Her smile only seemed to be brighter by the end in hopes that he’d help.

“You’re his friend?”  The man instantly seemed wary of her.

“Of sorts,” Krystal said.  Maybe she shouldn’t phrase it that way.  Did he not have a good reputation here? 

“He’s in KokuyoLand.”

“KokuyoLand?”  It sounded like an amusement park.  “Where is that from here?”

The man seemed a little nervous as he gave her directions.  Listening carefully, Krystal mapped it out in her head. 

“Ok.  Thank you.  You’ve been very helpful.”  Leaving him with one last smile, she headed out.

Standing in front of the old building, she couldn’t help but wonder what type of person Mukuro was exactly if this is where he lived for so long.  In the early twilight, the building cast its shadow on her, making her more nervous than she normally would be.  She hauled her bag just into the main entrance before leaving it there.  She’d get it on the way out. 

The dim lighting inside didn’t bother her.  She often avoided using lighting in her own place.  But the dilapidated state set her on edge.  She didn't want to fall off a ledge after all, did she?

Making her way up to the top floor, she eventually came across an area with large windows.  The windows let in enough light for her to clearly see the fridge and stove on the far wall along with a small living area in the middle.  Her eyes almost passed over it all until she recognized Mukuro’s hair poking over the side of the sofa.

Instantly her anger flared up again.  Any thought of sleep she had after the plane disappeared.  Not only had he run away, but he was _napping_?! 

“You…”  The word wasn’t loud, but laced with enough poison to kill an elephant. 


	11. Brand New Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here comes the fight. And look! The rest of the gang!

**Chapter 11**

Her feet almost flew to the side of the couch.  Her nails digged into the palms of her hand as she clenched her fists.  Her lips pulled back over her teeth to create a snarl.  “You lied to me.  Do you know how worried I was?!  I thought you were dying from how Chrome talked!!” 

Mukuro’s eyes opened slowly.  “Oya?”

Her voice rose with every word.  “And then when I see you, you look like you’d been through hell. And you tell me it was just fall?!  Next thing I know, you’ve up and left.  And I didn’t know whether you were ok or not!!  Because nobody in that God forsaken place will tell me what the hell is going on!  Even Chrome!!  She wasn’t going to tell me a thing!  But she accidentally let it slip that you were _attacked_!!”

“You-!”  Krystal stopped to take a breath and keep from saying something she’d truly regret.  Her blood seemed to be racing through her veins, making her hot and jittery.  “You lied to me.  I went to help you and you lied to me.”

While she’d known how angry that made her before, she didn’t realize how much it actually hurt her that he’d lied.  Her jaw clenched and she held her eyes wide open to keep the tears at bay.  If she didn’t blink, she couldn’t cry.  Right? 

Coming all this way had been a bad idea.  She should just leave.  There were too many emotions to deal with.  As her flight instinct screamed at her to leave…

“Because no one is to get involved.  Not even Chrome or Ken and Chikusa.  It’s better that way.”  Mukuro’s voice was soft but firm.

Krystal immediately stopped and her anger flared again.  “Is this really better?!”  The words sprang out of her mouth without thought.  “It doesn’t help anything when you run off like that and lie!  I saw what you did.  I heard what happened after.  If you just trusted me or Chrome or someone, we could have helped!”

“And did you even _try_ to defend yourself?!  You’re able to take out a whole family but can’t even defend yourself?!?!”

“They caught me by surprise,” Mukuro muttered.

“I-“  Krystal couldn’t bring herself to say she hated him.  That wasn’t true.  She swayed slightly, unsure of whether or not to run.  She wanted to say she hates him.  That would be easier. 

Mukuro looked darkly amused and nodded.  “You hate me.  That’s understandable.”

Krystal looked just a little away from him.  “I don’t.”  Her voice cracked a bit without her meaning.  She wiped away the tears forming with her finger.  “You idiot…”

There was a dark chuckle from Mukuro.  “Is that so?  You can’t even look at me.  I wouldn’t blame you.  I’ve had many people hate me and not without reason.”

The way he said it so casually hurt her.  This time she couldn’t stop the tears as she looked at him.  “Do you hate me?  Are you trying to push me away?  Or are you just dim?  Because they care about you.  Tsuna cares about you.  Chrome cares about you.  She was so upset when she came to me that day.”

Krystal was surprised to see his gaze falter.  “I don’t hate you.  But I don’t want anyone involved in my matters.  Chrome is naïve.  She cares too much.  It’s best that personal matters remain so.  I can’t have anyone else getting involved.”

Suddenly she grabbed his collar and pinned him against the couch.  “Whether or not you like it, we’re involved in your matters!  This isn’t about what you want.  Did you even know that I followed you that day?  I saw what you did to that family.  Let me help protect you.  You obviously need it.  Your own stupidity is going to get you killed!  And don’t you dare lie to me again like that.  I want to know what’s going on.”

Mukuro’s gaze hardened again as he looked her in the eye.  “So you know that I’m a murderer.  That is nothing new.  I murdered my own family as a kid and continued to murder more.  I was imprisoned at Vindicare for it and broke out.  I possessed both children and adults and even Ken and Chikusa, all for my own gain.  I even possessed your friends and your cousin in an attempt to control Tsunayoshi.  Would you really stand by that?”

Letting him go, Krystal pursed her lips slightly.  She released him and stood up straight.  “But you’re not a bad person.  You’ve done bad things, but you’re not a bad person.”

A small smirk played on his lips.  “Oya?  Then what makes a bad person?”

“Those that don’t care.  That can’t tell wrong from right.”  She hadn’t thought about the answer, but it felt right.  “You do.”

His smirk vanished and was replaced by a perplexed stare.  “How would you know such things?”

“Why would you talk the way you do if you didn’t?  The way you try to keep others out of it.  Besides, you aren’t denying it.”  She didn’t know when she stopped crying.  Perhaps her frustration had dried the remaining tears. 

“Is that so…”

“Mukuro…..”  Her fingers rested lightly on her temple as she almost breathed his name.  Krystal couldn’t help herself.  She didn’t expect an answer.  “Why the hell do you do this?”

“I want to do this with my own hands,” Mukuro answered, surprising her.  “The mafia targets me and those around me even though I’m just repaying the debt of what they did to me.  They destroy everything they touch.  They gave this eye so that I could work for them, but then hate it being used against them.  They gave us no choice.”

“Let me help you then.” Unsure of where the words were coming from, she continued.  “I may not always like your methods, but let me help.  You don’t have to do this alone.”

“Besides, I like your eye.  You wouldn’t be who you are without it.”  Krystal shrugged at the end.  It was strange that she meant it so much.  But she’d never considered unusual traits to be a detriment to someone. 

“Peculiar.  You really think you can help me?  You’d subject yourself to the underground?” 

She swore in that moment that he could have pierced right through her with just his gaze. It felt a bit uncomfortable with how intense it was. “I thought you said you weren’t part of the mafia.”  Krystal’s head tilted to the side. 

“I’m not a part of the mafia.  The mafia may be part of the underground, but they aren’t the only thing there.”

She pursed her lips slightly.  “I already have to deal with Sakura.  Let me help you.  I can take care of myself.  Besides, who would suspect a girl who makes her living off opera?”  A smile and playful tone crept into her tone without warning.

“I’d rather you didn’t…”

Krystal couldn’t help her frustration.  “Why don’t you let me help you?!  I’d rather help you than let Sakura drag me into the mafia…”

“Because I care for you.  Don’t get involved.”

Mukuro’s answer left her taken aback for a few moments.  She couldn’t read much from him.  He’d stopped looking at her.  “Let me. One way or another I’m going to get involved, whether that’s you or Sakura eventually pulling me with her into the Vongola.  And while I love Sakura, I’d rather not end up there.  I hate the idea of the mafia.”

Throughout her answer, he’d slowly dipped his head into his hands.  “Stubborn,” he muttered. 

“Excuse me?”

“If you decide this is what you want to do, with no regrets, do you at least have some form of defense?”  Mukuro looked at her expectantly. 

“Um….”  Krystal rubbed the back of her neck nervously.  “I know some Tae Kwon Do and have a black belt, but…I haven’t really practiced it as much as I should…”

“That won’t be enough.  Especially not when the mafia has guns.”

Biting her lip, she looked at him.  “Do you have ideas then?  No guns.  I can’t stand guns.  I don’t kill.”

“Illusions would work well.  Perhaps a smaller weapon you can conceal, too.  You could join in with Fran on training.”

“Illusions?”  That perked her interest.  “Fran?  Wait.  Does this mean you’re going to let me help?”

“Only if you agree to learn how to defend yourself.  I won’t have anyone dying on me.  Fran is my other student.”

“Of course I will!  This will be fun!”  Krystal hugged him without a second thought.  “Thank you!  I swear, I have no regrets.  I don’t live with regret.”

There was an awkward pat from Mukuro.  “Fran has a sharp tongue.  Don’t mind him though.”

Krystal let go.  “But, don’t lie to me anymore. Not like that.  I need to be able to trust you.  And please come back to Italy.  At least until I finish school.”

“Oya…”

“Please, Mukuro?”  She couldn’t help the puppy dog eyes she showed him

“Fine.  Fran will come too.”

Krystal beamed and hugged him.  “You won’t regret this.  I promise.”  This time, for a second she didn’t want to let go of him.  He was warm and it felt strangely comforting to hug someone.  She couldn’t remember the last time she’d willingly hugged someone for more than a second. 

There was another awkward pat that was quickly interrupted by another voice.  “Shishou?  Are you awake from your princess nap?”

With a jolt, Krystal let go.  A small blush had spread across her cheeks as she looked at the boy maybe about five or six years younger than her.  It was weird that he was wearing a large apple on his head.

“Who’s that, Shishou?  Are you finally getting someone to like you?”

“Mukuro, who is this?” Krystal asked as she sat down.

“Fran,” Mukuro said.

He squeezed into the space between Mukuro and Krystal. 

“ _This_ is _Fran_?”  She poked at the apple on his head skeptically. 

“And you’re loud,” he said, immediately burying his head into Mukuro’s chest.

Instinctively, she whacked him on the head.  Hard.  “You do not want me to show you how loud I can really be, _boy_.”

“Shishou…..Save me.  I’m being abused.”

“Don’t go whining to someone else!  You brought that upon yourself!”

Mukuro chuckled.  “Please don’t hit my student.  I don’t need him losing anymore brain cells than he already has.”

“He started it,” Krystal muttered.

“I didn’t do anything,” Fran said.

“Maybe if you didn’t interrupt…”

“Fran,” Mukuro said.  “Krystal is going to be training with you.” 

He looked up.  “Oh?  Do we have another illusionist?  Where did you find her?”

“He didn’t _find_ me,” Krystal replied.  “I found him.  I had to come all the way from Ita-Crap.”

“I’ve never heard of that country,” Fran said.

“What’s wrong?” Mukuro asked. 

“I forgot.  I didn’t think about where I was going to stay.  Oh, no…”

“Shishou has funds,” Fran spoke up.  “I’m sure he won’t be so much of an ass and find you someplace.” 

She couldn’t help the small smile that came to her upon hearing Fran’s insult to Mukuro.  “I really don’t need the funds though.  I have the money.  I just… It’s getting dark and-“

“You can stay here,” Mukuro said.  “There’s still a room left along the hall here.”

“I, uh…”

“Slumber party!” Fran cheered.

“Mukuro-san~!”

Krystal turned toward the voice and saw two men around Mukuro’s age coming towards them.  One had blond hair and the other wore glasses and a beanie. 

“We found a strange bag downstairs,” the one with glasses said.  The voice was distinctly different from the one before. 

“Oh,” Krystal said. She rushed towards the voices. “Sorry.  That’s my fault.”

“Who are you?!” the blond one almost yelled.  He growled at her.

Instinctively, Krystal growled back.  “My name is Krystal.  Who are _you_?”

Fran laughed.  “Shishou, you attract the weirdest people.”

A small glow of pride settled in her chest at Fran’s comment. 

“Ken.  Chikusa.”  Mukuro’s voice carried as he rose from the couch.  “This is Krystal.  She’ll be staying with us until Fran and I return to Italy.”

“Krystal?”  A woman’s voice chimed in, coming up behind her.  “What kind of name is that?  I haven’t heard a name like that outside of the 70’s.”

“I happen to like my name.”  Krystal turned towards the voice.  A sick feeling immediately settled in her stomach as she saw the girl.  “What’s yours?

“I’m MM.”  The girl, MM, brushed her hair back.  “Surely you’ve heard Mukuro speak about me.  I’m his favorite.”

“No, you’re not, byon!” Ken snapped.

“Shut up, pooch,” MM shot back with a glare. 

“Umm….”  Krystal suddenly felt very out of place.  The feeling MM gave her put her right back in middle school and having to deal with schoolyard bullies.  “I have never heard of you.”

“I don’t know how you haven’t.”  MM’s glare left Krystal feeling cold.  “He must talk about me all the time.  Mukuro and I have always been close.  We’ve been together for a while now.”

Krystal’s eyebrows furrowed.  “Are you two soulmates?” 

“Well, we’re not sure yet, but-“

“We’re certainly not,” Mukuro interjected.

It was hard to keep the smirk off her face as Krystal saw MM’s face fall.

“Mukuro-“

“Krystal, you can take the room at the end of the hall.  Nobody is using at the moment.”  He continued as if MM didn’t even exist.

“You’re giving her that room!”  MM looked even more shocked and angry than before.  “But, that bitch-“

“MM,” Mukuro said, instantly silencing her.  “Shut up and never call her that again.”

There was a laugh from Fran and Ken. 

“Oh, Krystal.”  She turned to the sound of her name.  Fran was looking up at her.  “I’ll show you your room.”

Krystal nodded.  “Thank you.”


	12. Fooled Around

**Chapter 12**

“So, I guess you’re part of the gang,” Fran said.

“Gang?” Krystal repeated, trying out the new word. 

Fran nodded as he opened the door to her room.  It had a window to the side that let the last remaining light into her room.  Dust seemed to hang in the air even in the cloudy and filtered light.  The floor creaked slightly underneath her.  A fine layer of dirt coated the floor and there was a general lack of care the whole building had, but it seemed to be cleaner than the others.  It was sparsely furnished with a bed in the center.  A few other pieces of furniture seemed to have been left there such as a file cabinet.

“But where’s your uniform?”  Fran’s face remained stoic.

“U-Uniform?”  It occurred to her than all their outfits had seemed to match.  And he’d mentioned Kokuyo which Sakura had told her was one of the other schools besides Namimori.

“You’re a member, right?  We all wear it.  Even nasty MM.”

“Uh…”  Krystal was trying to figure out how to reply.  “I go to school at the Conservatory, so…”

“Then you’re not part of the gang?  Does that mean your shishou’s lover?” 

A blush spread hot across her cheeks.  The words were stuck in her mouth as she tried to reply.  “N-No!  I don’t love him!”

A look of confusion changed Fran’s typically stoic face.  “But, you care about each other.  It’s obvious he does for you.”

“Excuse me?” Krystal asked.  How much had he heard of her and Mukuro talking?  And it didn’t seem obvious to her.  And he couldn’t know that they were- No.  She wouldn’t think that word.  It wasn’t true.

“Shishou is already kinder to you than most people.” 

“I just don’t, ok?”  Krystal was a little nervous. 

“Ok.  That’s too bad.”  Fran left the room. 

Krystal set her bag down by the bed.  Taking the flashlight out, she turned it on and left it on the cabinet.  Fran’s words bothered her.  He couldn’t be serious about Mukuro being kinder to her.  It didn’t make sense.  He’d lied and ran from her.

“I can’t believe he gave you this room.”

Krystal turned towards the voice to see MM standing in the doorway.  Her arms were folded as she looked around with narrowed eyes.  “What do you mean?”

“Isn’t it obvious?  He gave you the nicest room in the place.  Where did you even come from?”  MM had a disgusted look on her face. 

That fact surprised Krystal.  It didn’t seem like a nice place, though compared to the rest of the building it may be.  There certainly wasn’t any broken glass she’d seen in other areas. 

“You’re not going to last,” MM stated.  Her narrowed eyes had turned on Krystal.  They were unerringly confident.

“What do you mean by that?”  Confusion rushed through Krystal.  She attempted to keep her face politely curious.  Years of practice was the only thing that allowed her to do that.

“Mukuro will just drop you whenever he’s done with you.  It’s what he does.” 

“I don’t think he will.”  The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.  She backtracked immediately, her feet unconsciously shuffling.  “I mean, he’s already said he’s going to come back to Italy and train me.”

“Train you?”  Disdain saturated her voice.  “You look so weak.”

An anger flared hot in her chest.  That was one thing that Krystal could not stand.  “I am not weak.”

“You won’t last a minute in our world.  I can already tell.  The way you dress is trash.  You are weak.  You-“

“MM.”  Mukuro’s voice behind her stopped her mid speech. 

“Mukuro!”  MM turned around brightly.  “You would not believe what she was-“

“Leave us alone for a minute.”  Annoyance seemed to almost radiate off Mukuro.

With a single glare back to Krystal, MM left.  Suddenly, she felt even more alone despite Mukuro.

“I’m not weak,” Krystal repeated softly.

Mukuro chuckled.  “I don’t think you are.  Ignore her.”

“You’ll really come back to Italy?” Krystal asked.  Despite everything, MM had succeeding in leaving doubt in her mind.

“I told you I would.”

The frown still was on her face.  “I hope you don’t try to push me away again.  It’s not good for you to do that.  I know that from experience.”

“Oya?  Is that so?”  Krystal couldn’t read his expression though his voice seemed curious. 

The corner of her mouth twitched up as she sat on the bed.  She pulled her legs up close to her chest and rested her chin on her knees.  It wasn’t a subject she normally spoke about.  It wasn’t something she was proud of.  “There’s more to me than you know.  I used to struggle more heavily with depression.  In high school I tried to push everyone away like you seem to try to do.  I thought it would be easier if they hated me.  That way I couldn’t hurt them.   They wouldn’t get hurt.  I figured out later that I was doing it because I didn’t want to get hurt if something happened to them.  But in the end, we all got hurt.  I was alone and they were upset.”

“I’m not going to let you be alone,” Krystal said as she looked up.  “I’ve tried what you try to do.  But nobody should be alone.  So, as Sakura says, I’m going to be stuck to you.  Like a starfish to your face.”

“An interesting comparison,” Mukuro said.

“Very descriptive, isn’t it?”  A smile took over her face again.   “It gets the point across.  A thousand suckers that will leave weird marks on your face if you try to push me off.”

Krystal snorted.  “You should have heard Fran earlier.  He’s already asked if I’m your lover.”

“Did he?”  Mukuro sounded amused.  “What did you tell him?”

“I told him no, of course.  I don’t love you.”  Her eyes went wide as she realized how that sounded.  “I mean….I don’t love you in that way.  You’re my friend, but I don’t like you romantically. I love you like a friend.  Or family.  Not like we’re dating.  Because we aren’t.”

“You seem unsure.”  Mukuro’s smirk finally showed on his face again. “We’ll start training as soon as we get back.  Don’t worry about the plane tickets.  I’ll arrange them.”

Krystal nodded.  The change in topic was a relief.  She could only stand so much embarrassment.  “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”  Mukuro started out the door.  One hand gripped it, ready to shut it. 

“And Mukuro?”  Her stomach twisted in worry for a second. 

He paused and looked back.  “Yes?”

“Don’t forget.  No more hiding.  No more pushing me away.”  Krystal flashed a smile at him.  Stretching her arm forward, she spread her fingers wide.  “I’m a starfish~.”

“Kufufu, of course.  I don’t want marks on my face.”  Looking over his left shoulder, Krystal thought she saw a glimmer of amusement in his eye. 

“Sleep well.”  Krystal said out of habit.  “Dream well.  No spiders.”

There was only another chuckle from Mukuro as the door closed.

*****

**A Couple Days Later**

Mukuro hadn’t been kidding about training.  There was little time to greet people when they got back. 

Sakura about had her head and Chrome had seemed relieved that they didn’t kill each other.  In fact, Chrome had thanked her for bringing Mukuro back.  For a second, Krystal thought she’d heard Fran ask her for a kiss.  Tsuna had skipped out claiming that he had a headache.  It was after this that she and Fran had been dragged to the training room by Mukuro.

Krystal was splayed out on the cool floor.  The feeling of her heart pounding made her slightly uncomfortable.  Training had left her a hot, sticky mess from the sweat.  Her hair was flipped over her head and off her neck.  Her cheek was pressed to the floor, taking in the chill that would soon leave it.   

“Shishou,” Fran’s monotone voice called out.  “I think you killed her.”

“I’m not dead,” Krystal heaved out, still not moving.  Her throat was dry.  For some reason, she hadn’t thought to bring water.  “I’m just mostly dead.  When the vultures start circling I’ll be concerned.  It’s been a few years since I’ve worked out like that.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Mukuro said. 

“So long as I don’t die before that point,” Krystal joked.  “Because I can’t move right now.”

“Don’t worry,” Fran commented.  “I think he’d be upset if he accidentally killed his soulmate.”

“Excuse me?”  Krystal’s head twisted to rest her chin on the floor and look up at Fran.

“Kufufu, what are you talking about?” Mukuro’s eyes were narrowed at the boy.

“You are, aren’t you?  It’s really obvious.” 

“We’re not soulmates,” they said in unison.  Krystal was now sitting up, her legs folded to the side. 

“Oh.  You’re in denial.”  Fran’s eyes were wide in feigned innocence.

Krystal sighed.  Mukuro chuckled, “We’re done here.  You can leave.”

“Yes.  Be together.  Alone.”  Fran turned towards the door. 

Krystal aimed a side kick to Fran’s side at the same time Mukuro whacked Fran in the head with his trident.  The force of the combined blows almost shoved him out the door.  Fran made kissing noises all the way into the hallway, seemingly unaffected by it. 

“You know,” Krystal said softly, “if he keeps that up I may help you kill him.”

“I wouldn’t mind accepting your help,” Mukuro said.

Shaking her head, Krystal dusted her bare feet off with her palms.  “That’s a change.  Also, I don’t know if you were aware, but the opera is coming up on campus.  It’s The Magic Flute by Mozart.  I think you should come.  You might find it interesting.”

“An opera?” Mukuro asked.

“Yeah.”  Krystal smiled at him.  Her stomach was fluttering slightly.  She didn’t want it to seem like she was asking him on a date.  Or even like she wanted him there.  “I won’t technically be going.  I’m in it.  Well, at least I’m in the Thursday and Saturday productions.  Queen of the Night.  Really fun aria for her.  Sakura isn’t really a fan of opera, so I have a spare ticket for Thursday if you want it.  I can’t think of anyone else who would want it.  It’s a bit of a drive for Hannah on a business day.” 

“I may take you up on that offer.” 

“I’ll see you later then,” Krystal said as she picked up her bag.  The fluttering had only gotten worse by his answer.  “I need to get home.  I left a lot of stuff unfinished thanks to you.”

“Remember water next time.”

Upon leaving, Krystal relaxed.  She bit her lip and closed her eyes.  Despite her better judgement, she was excited for Mukuro to see her perform.

 


	13. What Is Life

**Chapter 13**

“Thank you for coming.”  Krystal had found Mukuro in the reception area quickly after the show.  It had been a mess trying to reach him.  She was constantly stopped for congratulations and compliments. 

Mukuro chuckled as they exited the building.  “It was a welcome escape.”

Krystal’s arms folded across her chest, holding her music.  They were walking side by side and she was careful not to brush against him.  “I hope it wasn’t too boring.  I know opera isn’t for everyone…”

“It was far from boring.”  The reply was curt and caused Krystal to look at him.  His face gave no hint to her as to whether or not he meant it.

“I’m glad.”  She’d been worried it would be. 

“Where is your car?”  Mukuro was looking around the small parking lot by the theater.

Krystal was amused.  “My apartment is only a couple blocks away.  I walk to campus.”

“By yourself?”  Mukuro’s eyes furrowed.

She shrugged.  The darkness didn’t bother her.  Especially with the street lights.  They turned onto the side street that led to her apartment.  “Just me, myself, and I.  I’ve been fine in the past.  I stay alert.”

“It’s more than that,” Mukuro said.  Irritation had reached his face as he looked at her.  “You’re an easy target when you’re walking by yourself like this at night.”

“Well,” Krystal paused.  This had never been a problem for her before.  “You’re walking with me right now.  Besides, there’s no one who would want to target me.  People like that don’t get the chance to target someone like me.”

“You could be a target now.”  Mukuro’s face was stern.  “Associating with me and the Vongola will make you one.  It’s best if you don’t walk around like this.”

“And give up my freedom?”  Krystal was aghast.  She’d waited a long time to gain freedom from her sister by moving here.  “That’s not happening.”

“Then be careful.  I’m teaching you so you don’t get hurt.”

“I won’t get hurt.”  Krystal stopped walking.  “I promise you.  Just trust me.  I’ll be alright.”

Mukuro had stopped just in front of her.  “I don’t want to control you.”

“Nothing does,” she said simply.  Her sister had tried, but Krystal was too stubborn.  Freedom was everything to her.  Yet Mukuro might have a point.  “But, thank you for your concern.  I’ll avoid walking after dark when I can.”

They resumed walking in silence.  Krystal was a little nervous from the silence, even though Mukuro didn’t seem upset.  The carefully maintained distance between them wasn’t breached until they reached her apartment.

“Thank you again.”  Krystal bit her lip slightly.  Her stomach felt hollow and fluttery.  Stepping inside, she turned back around to Mukuro.  “I’m glad someone was able to come.”

“It was my pleasure.”

“Good night,” Krystal said.  “Sleep well.”

“Good night,” Mukuro said.  She caught a small smile from him before he turned.

Shutting the door carefully, Krystal quickly ran to her window and pulled back the curtain a little bit.  She watched as he walked down the street.  His steps were measured and swift down the sidewalk. 

“Bye,” she whispered as he disappeared out of view.  It almost made her sad to see him go.

*****

“Krystal!”

Sakura’s voice jarred her out of the training.  Her small illusion dropped with her concentration.  Fran’s was still intact but dissipated slowly as they looked towards the voice.

“Hold on,” Krystal said to Mukuro.  She yelled towards the door.  “I’m in here!”

“Krystal?”  Sakura’s head popped through the doorway.

“It’s the cat lady,” Fran said. 

Krystal shot a look at him.  She had no idea where that came from.

Mukuro chuckled, clearly annoyed by all this.  “What do you want?”

“I need to see Krystal for a minute.”  Sakura had grabbed her arm and was tugging outside the room.  Once around the corner, Sakura turned on Krystal.  “What are you doing in there?”

“Training.”  Krystal was confused as Sakura’s forcefulness.  She almost seemed angry.  “Why?”

“You’re training?”  Her eyes went wide.  It seemed like she was about to say something else, but stopped herself.  “Does this mean you’re joining the Vongola?”

Krystal shook her head quickly.  “Never.  I’m helping Mukuro.  He wants me to be able to protect myself.  But that doesn’t matter.  What did you get me for?”

Sakura’s face suddenly lit up and she clasped her hands behind her back.  “You’ll never guess what just happened!”

“Aliens abducted Tsuna?”

“No.”  Sakura’s excitement was unabated by the strange answer.

“Aliens abducted Gokudera?”

“No!  Why do you assume aliens?” 

Krystal shrugged.  “Seemed like the most logical answer.”

Shaking her head, she brought her hands out.  A small diamond glistened on her one hand.  “Gokudera proposed!”

“What?”  Shock rippled through her that was quickly replaced by joy.  In an instant, Krystal had locked her arms around Sakura.  “Congratulations!  Did that just happen?”

Sakura shook her head.  “Last night.  I wanted to tell you in person.”

“I’m so happy for you.”  Stepping back, Krystal took hold of Sakura’s hands.  “Is there anything I can do to help you?”

“Will you be my bridesmaid?”

“Of course,” Krystal said softly.  A glow of pride started in her chest.  “It would be my honor.”

“I need to go tell Yamamoto.  I’ll keep in contact.”  Sakura was almost bouncing from excitement.

“Alright.  You go.  I should probably get back to training anyways.”

“Thank you.”  Sakura embraced her in one last hug before heading off.

Krystal grinned.  It was good to see Sakura this happy.  The two had been dating for years and it was about time for this.  Although… that meant Krystal was now related to Gokudera.  Great.

“What was that about?”  Mukuro had paused to ask.  Fran was picking his nose in the background, which she decided to ignore.

“Sakura is engaged to Gokudera.”  Krystal’s grin widened.  “I’m going to be her bridesmaid.”

“The cat lady is getting hitched,” Fran interjected.

A chuckle came from Mukuro that forced her attention back to him.  “This will be interesting.”

“You should both adopt me,” Fran said again.  Both Krystal and Mukuro looked over at him.  “Then we could be a fruit family.”

“How the hell am I a fruit?”  Krystal’s reply was immediate.  But Fran’s idea made no sense.  “And why would I adopt you?  You never shut up!”

“I do it because I care.  Fruit lady.  Does this mean you bear fruit?  Oooo, fruit kids.”

His rambling made no sense to her, but she felt vaguely insulted by it all.

“Quiet,” Mukuro ordered him.

Fran stood up and patted Krystal on the back.  Some part of her wondered if he left a booger on her.  She looked towards Mukuro in confusion.  “M-Mukuro?”

“You two could be my fruit parents.”  Fran walked out the door. 

“Do I even want to know what that was about?”  Krystal was still immensely confused.  Fran had been teasing them constantly, but this was completely out of left field.  Though it might not be judging by how pissed Mukuro looked.

“Training is finished for today.”

Krystal didn’t question it.  “I’ll see you later then.  I need to study for my exams anyway.  School year is almost over!”

“I’ll see you for training tomorrow.”

****

It had been a long week of exams and studying, but Krystal felt light on her feet as she flew towards the training room.  Without classes, she had decided to arrive early.  She had checked her exam scores this morning and was ecstatic.

Mukuro was waiting for her in the room.  Without a second thought, she ran and hugged him, nearly knocking him over.  She was almost bouncing as she buried her face in his shoulder.

“I passed my exams!”  Krystal exclaimed.  She looked up at him, her eyes wide in excitement.  “And my teacher asked me to join her choir!  This is good.  This is really really good!” 

“Congratulations,” Mukuro said.  He seemed to actually have more of a smile than a smirk for once. 

“I’m done for the year!”  She closed her eyes and smiled.  In the next moment she felt something soft and warm on her mouth.  It wasn’t unpleasant, but it startled her wildly.

Her eyes flew open in shock to see Mukuro pulling away from her. Her heart was racing and her eyes somehow got wider.  Adrenaline coursed through her veins.  Unconsciously her mouth had opened slightly.  “Mukuro?”

He merely chuckled as he now grinned at her. 

“Why?” Krystal choked out.  She didn’t know what she felt at the moment.  The kiss had left her wanting more.  More of that closeness and warmth, but it didn’t make sense to her.  She had avoided contact.  Yet she was craving it now.  Just after one kiss.

“Because I care for you, remember?”  Mukuro’s grin remained, but it didn’t seem to be joking.

Her face slowly was turning red.  “What?”

“Oya?  You don’t know?”  While Krystal had let go, he still had his arms loosely around her.

Her brain wasn’t functioning.  She couldn’t think.  There was no reason for her to know.  “What are you talking about?”

“I love you.”

Everything went still.  This wasn’t happening.  Her confusion increased.  This wasn’t supposed to happen.  They weren’t soulmates.  It was a fluke.  She’d never fallen in love, but…  Her voice was faint.  “What?”

“I said I love you.”  There was a slight shrug of his shoulders as he let her go.

He seemed serious.  As serious as she had ever heard him.  Her knees were wobbling and she carefully sat down.

“It’s fine,” he said.  “I don’t expect things to change.”

The words barely reached her.  Krystal was shaking.  It was like all the energy in her had been condensed into her limbs with a determination to break her apart.  It was only in the back of her mind that she heard Mukuro say her name.

She held up a shaking finger to stop him.  He sat down near her, but left her some room to breathe. 

Once she found control of her breathing, she finally spoke.  She made it a point not to look at him.  “When?”

“Most likely from the beginning.”

Her face paled as she heard this.  This wasn’t good.

Fran’s voice broke through the awkward silence.  “Did you tell her, shishou?”

Neither one of them responded, so he continued.  “MM is going to have a bitch fit.  I hope I’m around to see it.”

Krystal looked over her shoulder at him.  “You knew?”

“Shishou makes it very obvious.”

“Obvious?”  That surprised her. 

“Yeah.  He already treats you like his girlfriend.”

Her eyebrows furrowed. “But I’m not-“

“I know.”  Fran didn’t bat an eye.  “But he does.  I always thought he would never like anyone.”

She slowly looked at Mukuro who had been watching her.  Her emotions were still a bit of a mess, but she needed to see something.  She motioned for him to come closer. 

There was a snort from the door.  “You guys are really slow.”  With a shrug, Fran left.  Guess training was cancelled. 

Mukuro looked a little apprehensive about it.  Slowly, he moved so that he was sitting in front of her.  The whole thing felt slightly uncomfortable. 

Krystal reached out and took his hand.  “Do that again?’

“Do what?”  For one of the first times, Krystal thought Mukuro looked confused. 

“From before.”  Her voice was monotone.  She looked at him expectantly.

“I did two things.”

Without a thought, she leaned forward and kissed him.  It was like she remembered.  The adrenaline came back in a second.  But this time, they were stiff. 

She pulled back quickly.  “I’m sorry.”  Her feet were moving to stand up.  That had been a mistake.

“No.  I’m sorry,” Mukuro countered.  He grabbed her hand.  “I didn’t expect that.  I apologize if I scared you.”

Before she could collect herself, he was walking out the door. 

*****

Krystal left her car behind at the mansion and decided to walk back to her apartment.  Walking had cleared her mind in the past.  The long walk didn’t bother her and she could call Sakura tomorrow to help with the car. 

But instead of heading straight towards her apartment, she had decided to wander around town as the sun set.  The light made the previously brightly colored buildings dull.  The town was encased in shadows until she reached the piazza. 

The fountain in the center created a type of white noise that was soothing to her ears.  It reminded her of the fountains back home.  Krystal took a seat and let her fingers rest in the water.  The coolness reset her brain. 

She hadn’t been ready to admit it earlier, but at some point she’d fallen for Mukuro.  Hard.

Sure, he was stubborn, cold, and had an ego the size of Texas, but he’d also been kind, gentle, and intelligent. 

_‘Most likely from the beginning.’_

Those words haunted her.  She didn’t know when things had changed for her.  Certainly not when he’d stolen her brownie.  But, maybe something had changed when he defended her from Gokudera.  Or maybe it was Christmas when he’d been the only one amused by her and Gokudera’s fight.  Or maybe it was when she found out he was hurt. 

It was no use trying to figure it out.  She was in deep now. 

She thought about what had happened earlier.  She’d never had a good example of a relationship in her life.  If she went through with this, she’d be on her own.  Well, not completely.  From how Mukuro talked, he hadn’t had good examples either.

And that kiss…  Her cheeks heated up again.  That was her first kiss.  And she was craving more.  Physical affection had always been something she lacked.  This taste of it made her want more.  It was an unsettling feeling.  The idea that human contact was ok.

Krystal was on her feet and moving again, her mind in a daze.  This hunger was eating her up. 

Hopefully she hadn’t messed things up with Mukuro.  The shock that first kiss had given her had been difficult.  It wouldn’t surprise her if things went back to the formal relationship they’d had before. 

The sun had set by now.  A few streets had lights as she wandered down them.  Hoping to get to her apartment quickly, she slipped down a walkway.  It cut through the bad part of campus, but it would be quicker than going around. 

There were still a few people walking around.  That reassured her.  But her heart sank when she heard footsteps behind her.  A glance out of the corner of her eye showed it was a man around her age. 

She lightened her footsteps but wasn’t concerned.  If he was her age, he was probably a student.  Actually…She looked again. 

That’s right.  He was in her music theory class.  Marco was his name.  He’d played trumpet for them.

She slowed down.  It might be better to walk with him. 

“Hey, Marco,” she said as he caught up.  She resumed her speed once they were even.

“Krystal, right?” he asked.

She nodded.  “I’m heading towards my apartment.  Where are you going?”

“My friend has a party across campus.  Anyone is welcome.  Want to come with me?”  He looked at her expectantly. 

But she had to disappoint.  Krystal shrugged.  “Sorry.  Not my thing.  I hope you don’t mind if I walk with you a while though.”

“No problem.  Just give me a sec.”

Krystal waited as he pulled out his phone and sent out a text. 

“Ok.  I’m ready.”

Krystal became more comfortable as they made more small talk.  He’d be heading home in a week now that classes were done.  They talked about exams briefly but soon fell into silence.

“Hey,” Marco said suddenly.  He grabbed Krystal’s arm, causing her to flinch.  “I know a shortcut.  Right between those buildings.”

Krystal looked at where he was pointing and saw an alley large enough for a few people.  It wasn’t well lit, but the buildings weren’t large.  It should be short.  She nodded.  There were shortcuts everywhere here. 

She followed him towards it but stopped several feet in when she realized it was a deadend.  He must have gotten the wrong one. 

“Marco-“ she began, turning around.  Her heart chilled.  There were several other men she didn’t know at the entrance.  Marco was smiling at her.  “What’s going on?”

She shifted her weight to the balls of her feet.  Most of her Tae Kwon Do training wasn’t well remembered, but some was just common sense.  Her stance widened slightly.  Her eyes went wide and she tried to look more innocent.  She was afraid the adrenaline would give her away.

“I’m sorry,” she said lightly.  She thought she saw someone passing by on the campus.  Maybe they were headed their way.  “There must be some mistake.  If you’ll excuse me-“

Marco shoved her shoulder when she tried to slip between them.  It didn’t hurt, but the force was enough to make her nervous.  

“There’s no mistake,” Marco said.

“But, Marco....”  Krystal moved close to him.  There were a few different ways she could get out of this.  Her hands were behind her back so he couldn’t grab them.  She leaned in close by his ear and whispered.  “I thought you were taking me home.”

“Plans chang-“  He was cut off by her suddenly bringing her foot up and kicking him in the balls. 

“So did mine.”  She hit him in the head with her bag and looked towards the exit.

One of the other men grabbed her wrist and she dropped her bag.  It landed hard on  her foot before rolling off.  Another had her by the waist.  Krystal struggled and thrashed.  She dropped her weight and twisted.  The grip on her wrist tightened though the other seemed to have a hard time keeping his grip.  The last man tried to grip her leg.  He was hindered only by the fact that she kept aiming for his groin with her kicks.

She screeched angrily and clamped her teeth down on the arm of the man who held her wrist.  In the next moment, they all let her go.  Her head hit the pavement and there was an ache on her back.  She sat up, disoriented and her palms burning.  When she looked up, Mukuro was hitting the one man in the stomach with the blunt end of his trident.

His eyes were narrowed in furious concentration.  It almost emanated from him.  They didn’t stand a chance.  It was over in a matter of seconds. 

Krystal brushed her hands against her leg and licked some of the blood from the scrapes off.  Pickup her bag, she carefully stood.  Her back and head were still a little sore.  Mukuro grabbed her wrist and helped her up.  The fury he had wasn’t gone.

“They tried to hurt you,” he said simply.  His breath was shorter than normal though he couldn’t have exerted himself much.

“But I’m alright.  Everything’s fine.”  Her nurturing mode immediately kicked in.  Krystal put a hand on his arm.  Her hands were course from the fall and she was glad that the sleeves were long so he couldn’t feel them.  But she could feel him. He was shaking.  She followed as he walked back out of the alley. 

“They attacked you.”

“Yes,” Krystal acknowledged.  Her head throbbed.  Having already moved on from what happened, she felt the need to relax him.  “I’m alright now.  Come on.  Let’s get you to my apartment.”

He didn’t say anything but acquiesced when she tugged his arm to get him going.  Walking might calm him.

The silence was almost too much to bear.  The crickets barely made a sound to break it.  Finally she nudged him gently with her shoulder.  “At least I didn’t end up like you.”

“If you had there would be hell to pay,” Mukuro stated.

Krystal looked down.  A little guilt washed over her.  “It won’t happen again.”

Mukuro’s eyes simply narrowed in response.

“At least it wasn’t mafia,” she joked.  A small smile came to her lips.  Mukuro wasn’t angry with her.  He hadn’t once blamed her.  He was still dwelling over those boys.

There was no response from him.

She nudged him again.  “I’ll be fine.  You don’t need to worry about me.  I knew what I was getting into when I said I wanted to help you.”

Mukuro seemed to relax though he remained silent.

Sighing, Krystal took his hand in hers.  She hoped he’d take her nervousness to be from what just happened, not what she was about to say.  “You know I love you, right?”

Mukuro paused in his walk, causing her to stop too.  “What?”

“What?” Krystal repeated.  She couldn’t help her grin.  His expression was as perfect as she could hope for.  She turned away from him and kept walking.

She felt him squeeze her hand gently.  “I love you too.”


End file.
